A fantastic interview, full of insights into a man who had a hand in the birth of punk, New Wave, (artist and producer at Stiff Records), was related to Johnny Cash (via his marriage to Carlene Carter), and wrote a very toe-tapping song about the true story of an aging silent-movie star whose corpse was eaten by her dog (“Marie Prevost”).

Host Ira Glass explains that our show's a little different this week. It consists of one long story, lasting the entire hour, about a young boy, an abandoned house, and the mysterious family who once lived there but seemed to disappear without a trace.

Act One

Adam Beckman tells the first part of his story, about how, back in the 1970s, he and his friends broke into an abandoned house in the small town of Freedom, New Hampshire. The home turned out to be a perfect time capsule, containing the furniture, letters and personal effects of an entire family ... abandoned for decades. It seemed like the family just vanished one day, leaving salt and pepper shakers on the table, notes on the bedroom mirror, and a wallet with money still inside. Adam and his friends read the letters, saving some as clues, and never forgot.

I heard this episode of This American Life, when I was in SLC, and sat in a parking lot until it was finished. It was cold out, so I’d restart the car every 15 minutes or so, to get the heater going.